


At My Side

by A_Tsundere_In_A_Sweater



Category: Brothers Conflict
Genre: F/M, It's not blood siblings, Secret Relationship, Wedding, bro con, calm down, hidden relatioship, reader takes Ema's place, sister x brother
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-22
Updated: 2015-11-22
Packaged: 2018-05-02 20:03:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5261669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/A_Tsundere_In_A_Sweater/pseuds/A_Tsundere_In_A_Sweater
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Natsume and the reader are in a secret relationship under their brothers' noses. What else is there to say?</p>
            </blockquote>





	At My Side

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a fluffy, romantic one-shot I wrote on a cold winter night. No, no, I'm joking....I wrote it this summer xD  
> Anyways, this is from Reader-chan's POV.

I woke up to the sound of knocking on my door. “Five more minutes!” I yelled to whoever was knocking.

“Sis, the wedding is in three hours, aren’t you up yet? Or do I have to come in and wake you up myself?” Futo replied. His voice may have been muffled by door, and I may not have been able to see him, but I could still picture the smirk on his face, and his devilish eyes lighting up with perverted fantasies.

I sat up in bed at lightning speed, and yelled, “Okay, okay, I’m getting up right now!” If there’s one way to get me out of bed in a heartbeat, it’s by threatening to let Futo into my room while I’m still in my bed. I hurriedly got out of my bed, made it, and sprinted to the bathroom adjoined to my room, and put in my contacts. After this, I gave my hair a quick brush, and headed downstairs. When I got down there, my thirteen brothers were already up and eating breakfast. I greeted them all with a simple, “Good morning,” and walked into the kitchen. I pulled some cereal out of the cupboard, and then grabbed a bowl and spoon. I turned around to walk over to the fridge to grab milk, and bumped into a solid chest. I looked up, and saw my older brother, Natsume, smiling down at me, and holding up the milk.

“Here you go,” he said, and set the milk down on the counter next to me. Our house is made in a way that the kitchen is closed off from the dining room, and no one sitting in the dining room can see into the kitchen. Natsume looked around out of habit, and made sure there was no one was around. Once the coast was clear, he pulled me into a hug, and leaned down to kiss me. I looked up to him, and closed the gap between us. He wrapped his arms around my waist, while I reached up and put my arms around his neck. He deepened the kiss, and I ran my hands through his hair. We jumped apart as we heard our brothers getting up from the table. He smiled at me, and murmured, “I love you,” and I whispered it back. He walked out of the kitchen, and I continued making my breakfast like nothing had happened. As everyone else walked in, I ducked out, and sat at the table to eat my cereal.

I suppose now would be a good time to explain what just happened. Natsume and I have been together for the past year. A little over a year ago, all thirteen of my step-brothers had told me they loved me in some way or another. I didn’t want to hurt any of their feelings, or cause a rift in their relationships with each other, so I turned them all down. However, when I turned Natsume down, he just kissed me, and told me that even though I didn’t love him, he wouldn’t stop loving me. During the next two months, Natsume and I started hanging out with each other more often, but always just as friends, and as siblings. One day, I finally realized that he was the brother that I really loved. We had been walking around the town after going to hear a band play in a nearby park. We stopped into a little café before we headed home, and just talked for a while. He told me about a new video game that the company he works for is about to come out with and promised me that he would bring me a sample the next time we hung out.

On our way home, he stopped me just before we got to our house, and asked me how I felt about him, and if my feelings had changed at all in the past two months that we had been hanging out together.

“Ema, I need to ask you something,” He said, looking me straight in the eyes. I looked at him curiously, and nodded my head, signaling for him to ask me. He paused, looked away as if to build up his courage, and then looked back at me. “I know that we’ve been hanging out together more often, and I wanted to ask if your feelings for me have changed, even a little bit.” He continued, scanning my face for anything that might give away my feelings. Although I really did love him, I knew that we could never be together. If I admitted my feelings for him and we got together, I knew that it would cause a rift between the rest of my brothers, and the two of us. For now, I had to lie in order to keep the peace in our family.

“Natsume, I love you, but just in the way that a sister loves her brother. I’m really sorry that I don’t return your feelings, but there’s no way I can just change that.” I said sadly. I saw a look of disappointment cross over his face, but it was gone just as quickly as it had come. He slowly stepped forward, causing my back to be pressed against a stone wall. He kept looking me in the eyes, and stared at me for a few seconds.

“You’re lying.” He replied. “You do love me, and I can see it, so why don’t you just say it?’ He asked me gently, leaning his head down to my level in order to detect any emotion on my face. I looked at the ground, not knowing what to say. No matter how much I loved him, I knew a relationship between the two of us would never work.  
“I’m not lying.” I whispered, looking at my feet. “I just love you as my brother.” My voice was quiet, and I leaned my head away from him. I felt his hands close around mine - gently, but in a way that made it clear that he wouldn’t let go until I told him the truth.

“Just admit it! I’m still in love with you, just as much as I was two months ago, if not more! These past two months that we’ve spent together have been the best months of my life!” His voice had been rising with each sentence. “Why can’t you just be honest with yourself, and with me, and tell me how you really feel? All you’re doing is lying to both of us.” His voice became quiet on these last few lines, and I couldn’t bring myself to face him. I knew I was lying to us both, but I had to. I couldn’t let something like this cause a fight in our family. I felt the pressure come off one of my hands as he tilted my chin up towards him. I was still looking away, and knew that if I looked into his eyes, all my resolve would melt.

“Ema.” He whispered. This got my attention, and I looked up at him as he slowly leaned forward and lightly kissed me. After our lips made contact, I melted into his arms, and returned the kiss. We broke apart, and he put his head by my ear and whispered, “I love you.”

“I love you too.” I replied. We stood there for a while, his arms wrapped around me, while I rested my head on his chest. His head was resting on top of mine.

We then agreed it would be better not to tell anyone about our relationship, as it might become ugly. We casually walked back, and we’ve been together ever since.

With me being in college, and him having his own place, it’s not terribly hard for us to hide our relationship. The hardest person to lie to is Yusuke. Since we go to the same college, we see each other all the time. Whenever he asks if I want to go do something and I already have plans with Natsume, I have to lie and say that I have to run errands, or I’m studying for a test the next day. I hate lying to him, and to all my brothers, but I know that it’s for the best. It’s even harder to hide our relationship in front of others. We have to be careful that no one we know sees us together, as they might tell one of our brothers, or our parents. The only person who knows that we’re together is Juli. He’s seen us together, and after multiple talks with him, Natsume and I have convinced Juli to give us his blessing, and not to tell Louis about us. He agreed, and seems to be alright with our relationship as long as he is sure that Natsume is treating me right.

For the past couple of days, all thirteen of my stepbrothers and I have been living back at the main house where we all used to stay. Even Hikaru, Iori, Futo are home. One of our parents’ family friends is getting married, so Mom and Dad wanted all of us to attend the wedding, so we all came home from wherever we were. It’s been nice living together with everyone again, but it makes it even more difficult for Natsume and I to hide that we’re together. We could have easily been caught in the kitchen if we hadn’t been careful. Yesterday, Futo was walking down the hall and almost caught us holding hands. The day before that, we had thought the house would be empty for a while, so we were cuddling on the couch watching a movie, when Kaname walked in the door. He didn’t see us, but it was a close call.

I finished breakfast quickly, and hurried upstairs to shower and get ready for the wedding. After I got out of the shower, I quickly dried my hair, and put on my dress. As I was about to fix my hair, I heard a knock at my door. I got up and answered it, and saw Louis smiling at me.

“Chii, would you mind if I did your hair today?” he asked with a smile. I of course said yes. I loved it when Louis did my hair. He truly has a gift. He quickly did my hair in curls, with a bit pinned up in the back. It looked amazing, just like it always did when Louis did my hair.

“This looks amazing! Thank you so much!” I told him. He smiled and told me that if I ever wanted my hair done, all I had to do was ask. I thanked him again, and after we talked for a few more minutes, he left to go get ready. I had decided to get ready a few hours early so that I wouldn’t make everyone else late, and would have plenty of time to make sure I had everything together.

About ten minutes after I had finished applying my makeup, I heard another knock at my door. I quickly got up and opened my door. Natsume was standing there, already dressed for the wedding. While Natsume is always handsome, he looked even handsomer today. He was wearing a pitch-black suit with a stark white shirt, and a green tie. His hair looked like he had attempted to comb it, but it had started to do its own thing. It was perfect. He was perfect. I pulled him into my room and shut the door so that we could talk freely. He looked at me with this look on his face that I couldn’t decipher, so I asked, “What’s that look for?” He just kept on looking at me, and after thirty more seconds, I was starting to get uncomfortable. I began to wonder if I had something on my face, or if my dress was stained, or if my hair looked bad. I was about to ask him what was wrong, when he finally said something.

“You look absolutely beautiful. I mean, you always look beautiful, but right now, you look too good to be true. I feel like I should pinch myself, to see if this is just the best dream I’ve ever had.” He said, still looking at me. I felt myself blushing, and I felt like crying. I started to tear up, and he looked horrified.

“Was it something I said? I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have said that much! I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable or anything like that!” He said with a rush. He looked at me as if I was about to break, and pulled me into a warm hug. I looked up at him half-laughing, but still with tears in my eyes.

“No, no, no! You haven’t done anything wrong at all! It’s just - that was the greatest compliment anyone has ever given me in my entire life.” I said my voice shaky from shock. He breathed a sigh of relief, and I buried my face into his chest. After a few minutes, I pulled away and looked at him. “I probably have makeup running down my face don’t I?” I asked with a slight laugh.

“Nope, your makeup is still perfectly intact,” he replied with a chuckle, running his hand over my cheek. He suddenly put his hand into his pocket and said, “Oh! I almost forgot!” He pulled out a sleek black box, and said, “I saw this on my way home from work, and I thought it would look beautiful on you.” He blushed and looked at the floor as he said this, and it was the cutest thing. He opened the box and pulled out a necklace. It was a medium-sized, oval, opal pendant backed in silver, on a silver chain. It was stunning, and I had never seen anything like it.

“Natsume! It’s gorgeous! Thank you so much!” I said. I stood up on the tips of my toes, and put my hands around his neck. He leaned his head down, and our lips connected. It was a slow and gentle, yet passionate kiss. After neither of us could go without oxygen any longer, we broke apart. He guided me over to my mirror, and stood behind me. He put the necklace around my neck, and fixed the clasp behind my neck for me. “I love it.” I whispered.

“I’m so glad you do.” He replied, while turning me around to face him. He leaned forward, and lightly kissed the top of my head. I wrapped my arms around him, and we stood there like that for a few minutes. After we separated, he said, “I should probably go, I’ve been in here for a while, and the others are probably wondering where I am.” His voice sounded reluctant, so I gave his hand a squeeze.

“I’ll be down in a few minutes okay?” I told him with a smile. He nodded his head, and squeezed my hand.

“Okay. I love you,” He told me with a smile.

“I love you too,” I replied, slowly letting go of his hand. He turned around to leave, and just as he was about to open the door, I called out, “Wait!” He turned around and looked at me to see if I was okay. “Will you sit by me at the wedding?” I asked him.

“Of course,” He said with a smile and a small chuckle. He turned back around, opened the door, and after looking both up and down the hall, he slipped out of my room silently.

After making some final touches to my outfit, makeup, and hair, and choosing a purse and earrings to match my dress and necklace, I was finally ready to go downstairs. Juli had gone off with Louis once he left after doing my hair, so I would just say goodbye to him later. As I walked downstairs, Natsume was standing with Tsubaki, Mom, and Dad.

“Mom! Dad!” I yelled, running up to them.

“There’s our little girl!” My dad replied, giving me a bear hug. “You look as beautiful as ever!” He said, holding me an arm’s length away and looking me over.  
“That dress looks lovely on you! I knew that color would look great on you!” Mom said with a smile. She pulled me into a hug, and commented, “You must have all the guys going after you!” At this, Tsubaki did a small double-take that only Natsume and I noticed. Natsume just stood there with a look of amusement on his face.

“Now, now, let’s not get to hasty! She doesn’t need to have a boyfriend yet! She’s still my little girl!” Dad said with a laugh, and a wink at me. I laughed half-heartedly, and now it was Natsume’s turn to look uncomfortable. I can’t blame him though. I don’t know what our parents would say if they found out two of their children were dating each other. While it may sound wrong to many people, Natsume and I aren’t related by blood, just by our parents’ marriage.

“Ah well.” Mom said. “Anyways, we really should be leaving. Where are the rest of the boys?” She asked. Right at that moment, Ukyo and Masoami came walking down the stairs, and Ukyo answered her question.

“Everyone else is still getting ready, but Masoami and I can drive everyone else later. The five of you can go on ahead and leave.” He said, going up to greet her and Dad.

“Would you dears? That would be great! Thank you both!” Mom replied with a smile, after greeting both her sons. “Well then, let’s get going you guys!” She said, ushering the four of us out the door.

We were riding in a minivan, since it was the only way the five of us would fit. Dad drove, while Mom rode shotgun. Tsubaki sat in the left seat of the middle row, while Natsume sat in the right seat. There was no middle seat in the minivan, so I sat in back row behind Natsume. As we were pulling out, Natsume silently put his right arm back, and held my hand. It was risky, but Tsubaki was to busy reading over the script for his next role in a new anime coming out in a few months, and Mom and Dad were singing along to the radio, so no one noticed. A love song came on the radio, and Natsume began to rub his thumb over my hand, in time with the music. There were butterflies in my stomach. That’s one of the things I love about our relationship. We’ve already been together for a year, but the simplest things still make me feel like we’ve just gotten together. I know that as long as I have him at my side, I could never be happier.

**Author's Note:**

> Yay! My first work on AO3. AO3 has recently become my life...so yeah. I hope you enjoyed it and all that happy jazz. If you have any constructive criticism, I'm open to hearing it, as well as your thoughts on the shot itself. :)


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